Upstanders, Not Bystanders - Gail Desler and Natalie Bernasconi

Description:

"Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can
change the world. Indeed, it's the only thing that ever has." ~ Margaret Mead

In our work as the co-curators of the Digital ID project (http://digital-id.wikispaces.com/), we have found that student voice and the power of story, taken beyond the classroom walls through technology, can spark transformative change in students' understanding of what it means to be a (digital) citizen.

The Upstanders, Not Bystanders VoiceThread addresses an essential aspect of
digital citizenship by asking the question, "What does it mean to be an
upstander?" - as opposed to a bystander, bully or target/victim. In less than
a year since its March 2013 posting, this dynamic VoiceThread has had over a
1000 visitors and is quickly becoming a tool for connected learning by inviting
and honoring stories of what it means to cross the line from bystander to
upstander.

In listening to the growing bank of contributors, it becomes clear to all
listeners that across generations and geographic and socio-economic divides,
all voices matter. Voices like Madeline's, a kindergartner who states the
case, "We need more upstanders on the playground to be nice to people." Or
like humanitarian Carl Wilkens, the only American to remain in Rwanda during
the 1994 genocide, who talks about a group of women who were "12-minute
upstanders." Each story contributes to the overall purpose of the
VoiceThread.

By documenting these important stories of people of all ages and time periods
standing up for others, as well as for themselves, the Upstanders, Not
Bystanders VoiceThread sheds light on how events of the past impact the
present. It is our hope that when students contribute to shared, connected
conversations on the potential of upstanders to make a difference, they will
recognize the very real possibility of a small group or even of a single person
changing the world.

Plan:

We knew from the start that we wanted a very broad representation of both ordinary and extraordinary people whose courage in crossing the line from
bystander to upstander has made a difference. To ensure easy entry points for
teachers, we created separate slides for elementary, middle, and high school
students, plus adults (1st slide) - but with the invitation that everyone is
welcome to respond to others' comments across grade levels and generations.

Assignment:

The project was initially sparked by the California Writing
Project's May 2013 initiative Upstanders, Not Bystanders. We knew that our
contribution had to include student voice. What better platform than
VoiceThread?! Teaching students the role of the upstander is a first step in
eliminating bullying because rarely, if ever, are bullying incidents limited
solely to a bully and a victim. A major goal of the Upstanders, Not Bystanders
project is to showcase stories of those who have confronted injustice and
cruelty. These stories have the potential to create an interactive model that
empowers students to step up, speak out, and be agents of change in all the
communities to which they belong, both online and face-to-face.

Tips:

A second benefit of the Upstanders, Not Bystanders VoiceThread is to address state and federal requirements as well as curriculum standards. For educators
seeking to meet the 2012 CIPA (Children's Internet Protection Act) e-Rate requirements (http://goo.gl/v2rhBQ) "to educate minors about appropriate online behavior, including online interaction with other individuals in social networking websites and in chat rooms and cyberbullying awareness and response," for instance, this VoiceThread challenges all forms of bullying and also offers teachers opportunities to guide students in protecting online
privacy and in building a positive digital footprint. For example, we recommend that elementary students publish with an avatar instead of a photo and by first name only. For middle school students, we recommend sticking with an avatar and using first name + last name initial. For high school students, to ensure that they "Google well" when prospective employers or scholarship committees run background checks, we recommend using full name, and, if they wish, a photograph.

In addition to meeting legal imperatives, the Upstanders, Not Bystanders
project also complements the work of digital citizenship champions Jason Ohler
(http://www.jasonohler.com/index.cfm) and Mike Ribble (http://digitalcitizenship.net/Home_Page.html) and, accordingly, aligns with the ISTE Standards on Digital Citizenship (http://www.iste.org/standards), both for Students (S #5) - "Students understand human, cultural, and societal
issues related to technology and practice legal and ethical behavior" - and
for Teachers (T #4) - "Develop and model cultural understanding and global
awareness by engaging with colleagues and students of other cultures using
digital age communication and collaboration tools."

Lastly, and also central to our purpose, we wanted the Upstanders, Not
Bystanders project to align with the Common Core Writing Goals for State
Standards (http://www.corestandards.org/ELA-Literacy) for college readiness,
which recognize the value of students being able "to understand other
perspectives and cultures through reading and listening....and "to evaluate
other points of view critically and constructively," so that they can
"engage effectively in a range of collaborative discussions... with diverse
partners...building on others' ideas and expressing their own clearly,"
leading to the capacity to "produce clear and coherent writing in which the
development, organization, and style are appropriate to task, purpose, and
audience." We recognize that in providing students with a global microphone
for putting their college (and career) readiness skills into practice, they are
also becoming "community ready," an essential skill for digital and global
citizens.

Tools:

We used each of the slides originally as part of PowerPoint presentation for a statewide writing conference. We ended our session feeling that we needed to extend the conversation to a broader audience, one that included students.
Being able to upload a PowerPoint directly into VoiceThread helped jumpstart
the Upstanders, Not Bystanders project.

After publishing the project, we found an easy way to help those who are new to
VoiceThread contribute was to connect with them via Skype or Google+ Hangout.
This way, not only could we talk them through the process and options, but they
could also share their screens with us, allowing us to provide timely
step-by-step assistance.

Advice:

We would encourage teachers to never underestimate the power of student voice and story.

To ensure that student voices extend beyond the walls of the classroom,
whatever the VoiceThread topic might be, we also recommend connecting and
collaborating with other classrooms or organizations. Thanks to our
partnerships with Common Sense Media (http://www.commonsensemedia.org/) and the
California Writing Project (http://www.californiawritingproject.org/), we are
thrilled that the Upstanders, Not Bystanders VoiceThread will be featured as
part of California's second annual Digital Citizenship Month events
(http://goo.gl/bXu8Bu) .